myctophid
/mɪkˈtɒfɪd/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
22
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Any of the small deep-sea fish of the large family Myctophidae, known for their conspicuous use of bioluminescence.
Example Sentences
- "The astronesthes, or 'eater of the stars,' so called because it feeds entirely upon other 'star-lit' fish called myctophids, is not only endowed with a number of small, luminous organs upon its body, but its fins, and the greater part of its chin-barbels, also emit a bright light."
- "You're a lucky guy to be eating anything right now. Instead you might easily be feeding the tunny fish and tarpon, to say nothing of the astronesthes and myctophids--"
Etymology
From translingual Myctophidae, from Ancient Greek μυκτήρ (muktḗr, “nose”) + ὄφις (óphis, “serpent”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: Myctophidae, μυκτήρ